Stories Untold – An Experimental Psychological Horror Adventure

Stories Untold is an extraordinary take on the psychological horror genre combining classic game mechanics like text-adventure, point-and-click and more. The game was a unique experience unlike any I have encountered before. Stories Untold is a narrative-driven anthology of four short episodes, each of which has its own unique mechanics and theme, and all of them connect into one bigger story. The game’s episodes and themes were influenced and inspired a lot by 1980s technology and nostalgia. So if you are looking for a game that has similar aesthetics and energy than the TV-series, Stranger Things, look no further.  Stories Untold was developed by an independent british game developer, No Code, and was published by Devolver Digital on 27th of February in 2017. It was first released on Microsoft Windows and macOS and later in 2020 for Nintendo Switch, Playstation 4 and Xbox One.

In this article, I will discuss the story of the game, so there might be some vague spoilers. In the first episode, The House Abandon, you play as an unknown character who plays a text-adventure game with the same title as the episode on an old computer. In the game that you are playing within the game, the protagonist arrives at his family’s old holiday home. There is a note from his father in the car’s glove compartment that helps the protagonist to restore the power to the house. As he explores the house, he is filled with fond memories from the house. Later, he finds his old computer with a copy of “The House Abandon”. When he starts the game there is a sudden power outage. The game restarts on the computer but everything in it has turned into a grim depiction. The room where you, the player, plays the game has turned into a broken dark room and the people’s eyes in the pictures on the desk have been scratched out. The house in the game on the old computer has turned into a broken carcass and all the fond memories have turned into disturbing events that vaguely hint about a horrible past. As you enter the house again in the computer game it becomes apparent that the actions you take in the game are mirrored into your environment. For example, when you enter the house in the computer game, you can hear a door opening and closing downstairs from where you are playing. The whole “playing a game within a game” concept in this episode might sound a bit confusing but it is much simpler when you are playing the game. I found the mechanics used in the first episode very intriguing because it brings an older game mechanic into a modern setting seamlessly. I also really appreciated how they managed to create and keep the suspense throughout the episode with very simple text-adventure mechanics.

The second episode is called “The Lab Conduct”, where you play as Mr. Aition, who is conducting a lab experiment on something called “Artifact 23”. The only thing that you are told about the artifact is that it was recovered from a crash site. You are directed to do a series of experiments by another character, Dr. Daniel Alexander, who is giving the directions remotely. Suspense is increasing almost exponentially as the experiments progress and things start to take a disturbing turn. The gameplay in the second episode is more like a point-and-click adventure, where the player operates different lab equipment combined with some text-adventure elements. I really enjoyed how the second episode starts with different  mechanics, which at first, made the game feel almost like another game. The new mechanics did not break the immersion because they were very easy to grasp. Just like the first episode, the second episode kept me on the edge of my chair the whole time. It starts quite slowly but as the experiments advance, the suspense also advances.

In the third episode you play as Jack who is sitting at a table in an antarctic monitoring station. On the table is a computer, a two-way radio and on the adjacent table, a microfilm reader. In this episode, the gameplay is mostly solving a series of puzzles using the radio and the microfilm reader to decipher various codes. As Jack is deciphering codes, he starts to receive more and more ominous messages which suggest that something terrible is happening. The episode uses similar mechanics as the previous ones but there are also some first-person exploration mechanics. Just like in the earlier episodes, the episode gradually builds up the suspense and I was completely absorbed into the story and atmosphere. I am not going to say and spoil anything else about the final episode, except that the final episode connects all the episodes together. Four Stories, One Nightmare. 

Stories Untold is truly remarkable and one of the most unique games that I have ever played. The game’s four episode anthology manages to keep the suspense and immersion throughout the whole game and the narrative is shocking and astonishing at the same time. It is amazing how the game introduces “old” game mechanics and nostalgic 1980s visuals into a modern adaptation in an exceptional way. It does not matter that every episode has varying game mechanics. They are really intuitive, and the unexpected change and the mechanics itself really supports every episode’s theme. The game was developed with a quite small team so there are some minor bugs and problems with it. However, in my opinion, they do not affect the game in a very negative way. I really like that, even though the game is categorized as horror, it does not rely on cheap jumpscares. Instead the game has a really captivating and thrilling atmosphere that relies on the psychological horror and suspense of the narrative. The game also forces the player to face quite unpleasant things, and I must say as a trigger warning, that the game’s story deals with really dark themes that may be unsettling for some people.

The playtime of the game is between three to six hours depending on the player’s play style, so it is suitable for people who do not have much time to play. You can also play it in one sitting if you have time and are brave enough. The game currently costs around ten euros and I would say that it is worth every cent. Stories Untold is a must-play for the fans of horror genre, who also do not like cheap jumpscares. I would also wholeheartedly recommend this game to anyone who enjoys well-written narrative-driven games.

Basic information:

Developer: No Code Studio

Publisher: Devolver Digital

Platforms: Windows, MacOS, Nintendo Switch, Playstation 4, Xbox One

Release Date: 27th of February in 2017 and later in 2020

Genre: Psychological Horror, Adventure

PEGI: 16

Pictures: Featured image and promo pictures from Steam and No Code studio’s website

You might also like

---

More from Game Reviews

---